dhicks

Without spending a fortune I would like to buy a pressure washer...mainly for cleaning two cars but also for cleaning house siding, patio etc....what have you guys got that you would recommend

SJB993

If you can get Karcher pressure washers in The States (made in Germany just like our cars) , I've always been very pleased with mine. I use it for cleaning the patio, garden pots, etc. and the underside of the 993. I never use it on the bodywork, but my neighbour washes his Mercs and Boxster with his - but then they are only Mercs and a Boxtser.

Go for the most powerful one your budget will stretch to.

epj993

I would think a pressure washer would be murder on the paint/finish, even at a low setting. Maybe I'm old school, but I still use a cotten mitt by hand and rinse with a shower setting on the garden hose nozzle. For the underbody & fender wells I've had good luck with Simple Green and other cirtus cleaners.

Mark in Baltimore

David,

I have one of the Home Depot 1750 psi ones. They do a decent job but would be pretty slow going for decks and siding. I've used the widest fan setting on my car's paint (not too close with the nozzle, either), especially useful after coming back from the track, and have not had any issues. With the pencil setting, though, you can probably write your name in the finish, kind of cool if you want to make sure no one steals it.

justin993

i have a 3600 psi pressure washer with a honda engine, its great, i would never use a pressure washer on my 993 or even my truck. Its funny when you drive by a car dealership and you see someone cleaning the inventory with a pressure washer, it can scratch the paint pretty easily.
the ones they sell at home depot are pretty good for around the house, i would go with 2500psi or higher.

Racer944

I'm quite happy with my Karcher electric unit... I use it on the boat, patio, deck cleaning, etc, but its not used on the cars.

Cheers;
Eric

kkim

Karcher units are sold every now and then at Costco.

f_scaife

I have a Karcher unit with the Honda engine. Starts on second pull everytime! As Kelly said Costco has these everytime I go there. Great prices too. I use mine on my other cars (Yukon and Silverado) with the wider fan. It works great with my CR Spotless DI water filter.

Ron

Could you possibly give us a little review of the CR Spotless filter?
Do you run the water from the filter to your pressure washers?

STLPCA

I've used a Karcher 1300 psi electric washer to clean my cars (incl P) for many years & have never had a hint of a problem. It makes fast work of wheels, wheel wells & even keeps my brake rotor vent holes cleared. As a reference point, 1300 psi is powerful enough for car use, but gentle enough that I can put my hand in the output, inches from the nozzle, w/o harm.
It's likely not powerful enough for siding, decks, etc.
Sam's Club has a small, electric portable 1300 psi Karcher for about $70.

Jeremy Pinsly

IIRC, I think Target used to sell the Karcher units.....

f_scaife

Ron,

Yes, the water comes from the hose bib, through the filters, then through the pressure washer. With the CR system you always have to 'choke' the flow out of the filter for it to be effective. The flow needs to be at around 2 gal per minute. On a regular hose nozzle you put in a restrictor (looks like a nickel with a hole in it). Pressure washers typically are already restricted at this rate.

I am still playing around with it, I want to put a sediment filter in-line before the DI filter in hopes it will make my filters last longer.

As a review, the first day I used it I went for the ultimate test. It was 104 degrees outside, and I washed my black Silverado in full sun. It was amazing, it DID NOT spot! After a few uses I started to get a few spots, nothing like regular water mind you, put a few spots here and there. Honestly it never worked as good as the first few washes, BUT... I left it attached to the hose a few times and I think my wife watered the plants with it, AND... I have really bad water (lots of dirt) so I think that when I put in my new filters (just got them) I will put a sediment filter on first as I mentioned, and see how that works.

I am very happy with it, I just need to dial it in a little better, maybe restricting it back a little more. In the valley where it is 100 in the shade all summer I feel it is a must.

No affiliations, blah blah blah....

Ron

I'm not sure I know what that means. Do mean reducing the flow to increase the pressure.

My pressure washer puts out 2.8 gpm @ 1500 psi maximum. The flow rate is as important if not more important that the pressure since it's the water doing the cleaning. While my pump does not have real high pressure it has a decent flow rate, it's a commercial General Pump TT9071 so it really can do what it's rated for consistantly.

Would that filter allow that flow rate? I could not find any information on the companies website on flow rate.

eloyex

Dont be lazzy and exercise the muscles ....

i have a great Karcher unit ... great for anything ,BUT wash a vehicle, including bikes and yachts. It is not only agressive for the paint and finishes but damages the washers, o rings, sealings, and all the gizmos designed to keep water and humidity away ... you can be forcing water into places do not designed to be wet as well as break the natural proteccion of some sealants.

Honda, Yamaha and other fine brands say in their vehicles manuals do not use pressure washers to clean the units. Neither engines or undercarriage. The energy of the waterjet is more than most of the people realize. Obviously, if you down the pressure and keep the nozzles away enough, probably you will not damaged the car.

Anyway, is not good idea to experiment with a non remplazable 993.

use your muscles .. !!
excuse my bad english ... sure you catch what i want to say here ...
eloy

f_scaife

Ron,

To be effective, the CR filter has to be restricted to around 2 GPM (on the out-put side), water will flow through it as fast as you want, but if unrestricted, it will not be fully de-ionized. Does that make sense? The unit has an indicator light on the output side that stays lit when the water is fully de-ionized, you can vary your restrictor (depends on how bad your water is) to where the light just stays lit. A little trial and error with different size restrictors. With no restrictor and free flowing, the light will not light up. There is an FAQ section and video on crspotless.com

Also, if your pressure washer needs 2.8 gpm the CR filter might not filter it quite fast enough.

For my 993 I have a regular hose connected to the output on the filter and I run a 2 GPM restrictor on my hose nozzle.